Cycling

I just recently began to get into cycling, something I blame the Outdoor Life Network for; their round-the-clock coverage of the 2004 Tour De France got me hooked. I bought a 2005 Specialized Allez Sport shortly thereafter on 8/6/04. I am happy with the purchase, but can't wait to upgrade to a truly sweet ride in the future.

		Here is a gift from Sarah's dad. Since he was a USPS executive he got some great souvenirs. Especially cool is this signed Armstrong jersey (#30 out of 100) -- you can see it just above the eagle's head. Also got a limited edition pin set. Sweet stuff.

If you live in the Princeton area, I would recommend highly Wheel Life Cycles 2 in Skillman -- which is on 206 across from the Montgomery Shopping Center. They spent several hours helping me figure out what I needed/wanted.

Given the climate change (and the fact it gets so dark so quickly now), I bought a Fluid2 trainer on 10/16/04. Nice piece, not as quiet as I had thought, but that is because the bike itself makes noise when pedaling. Next task is to figure how to get feedback -- my Shimano Flightdeck computer is attached to the stationary front wheel and therefore of no use in calculating cadence, distance and speed. Ugh.

To help motivate riding the trainer I bought a heart rate monitor (11/5/04). The Nike c6 Triax seems pretty cool. I especially like the 4 zone tracker (with a cool, but useless, graph) and the calorie tracker.

To extend the riding season I bought some new gear (11/19/04). Bought 2003 Assos Airblock Jacket (Titanium), 2003 Assos Airblock bibtights (goofy, I know, but it is cold out now!), Assos Robocap and Assos Merino Wool socks. Lickbike.com had the best price for the Assos gear I could find. After riding on 11/21/04 needed to pick up some Pearl Izumi toe covers for my shoes from my LBS Wheel Life Cycles 2.

Newest addition to my cycling "knowledge" is the Park Tools Bike School I attended on 2/27/05 at Wheel Life Cycles. Taught by Colin, it was a great experience for someone who (unfortunately) has lacked mechanical aptitude in the past; my brother got that gift. Hopefully this is the first step towards fixing that.

Replaced ALX400 wheelset with Easton Circuit Clincher Wheels

Replaced Specialized standard (triple) crank with FSA SL-K Compact Megaexo crank

Replaced "No name brakes" with Shimano 105 brakes

Replaced Shimano 105 rear derailleur with Shimano Ultegra derailleur

Replaced headset with Cane Creek Headset

Cycling.tv is an absolutely sweet site with live race coverage and stored coverage. A must.

VeloNews.com Get your daily cycling fix.

Bicycling magazine's website.

Official Disco Team Site.

ThePaceLine.com Fan-site for Lance and team Disco.

Official Team CSC Site.

Site for Team T-mobile (for Markus).

Graham Watson's site for classic images.

BikeJournal.com track your progress online.

Ullrich's page (in German).

Basso's page (in Italian).

The Princeton University Cycling Team has a bunch of rides here -- some with maps.

The BikeHighway webpage has a listing of rides in NJ here -- including 51 in Somerset County.

For the more adventurous, you can create your own route using the awesome resource provided by the New Jersey Bike Map. The guy running this site has mapped out almost every road in the state and coded those most suitable for cycling. Truly sweet -- just wish the scale was a bit larger.

The Princeton Freewheelers cycling club has a listing of upcoming cycling events here.

I love Maui. Next time I go, I plan on checking out Go Cycling Maui. Look forward to biking the "Hana Highway," but climbing the 10,000 ft. Mt. Haleakala would probably do me in. Looks like great bikes and great support.

Ireland, France, Spain, New Zealand and Italy. Trek Travel seem to have a nice outfit. Good/fast road bikes with SAG support.

Vermont. Country Inns Along the Trail seems to be the way to go. I'll have to get my bike up there, but that is what the bike rack is for. Luggage transfers and food included.

Quebec. The Route Verte collection of trails seems like a great possibility. Not sure how the logistics would work out.

Scotland, Wales? Haven't come across a package I like yet.

Bay Area. Not sure how the logistics would work, but riding some of Palo Alto Bicycle's Rides would be great.